Just about twenty-four hours after It's Showtime was announced to be entering into the Land of the Rising Sun, forming It's Showtime Japan, K-1 director Tanikawa decided that it was time to "strike back." There have long been rumors as to when exactly K-1 will return, if ever. The first big rumor was that K-1 would announce a comeback in the beginning of May. Seeing as though we are staring down the barrel of June, it's safe to say that it is a few weeks behind schedule.

It would be crass to not assume that It's Showtime's announcement had nothing to do with K-1 all of a sudden springing to life and wishing to protect their turf. We will keep you updated on the situation, and if the rumors are true we can expect another 63kg K-1 show, as the shows from last year were Japan-centric and helped work on building new stars for the Japanese audience.

In other K-1-related news, Tetsuya Yamato, the 63kg tournament winner last year was victorious in NJKF action against Masato Nishiyama, and K-1 Heavyweight star Kyotaro has announced on his Twitter that he is looking to enter the world of professional wrestling, much like Nagashima has.